The Scottish craft brewer Innis & Gunn is possibly on the verge of a sale. According to documents filed at Companies House, the Edinburgh-headquartered brewer reported an operating loss of GBP 1.2 million (USD 1.5m) for the year ending on December 31, 2022, compared to GBP 859,000 (USD 1m) in the same period the previous year. Innis & Gunn attributed the losses to "cost pressures that have hit the supply chain," with energy costs being a significant factor.
Innis & Gunn founder and director Dougal Gunn Sharp stated, "Despite external challenges felt across the entire industry, the group grew revenues by 7.7% through a combination of measures, resulting in volume growth, sales price per hectoliter growth, and hospitality sales growth." However, during a press conference after the annual general meeting in Edinburgh, Sharp mentioned, "we hope to sell the company." Shortly afterward, the company denied this statement, clarifying that Sharp was referring to its subsidiary, Flavourly, which provides fulfillment services and has since gone into administration.
Back in 2019, as the second-largest craft brewer in the UK off-trade, Innis & Gunn had plans to build a 400,000 hectoliter brewery, taproom, and visitor center at Heriot Watt University's research campus in Edinburgh, Scotland. The company aimed to open the facility in early 2021, coinciding with the scheduled end of a contract brewing agreement with Tennent Caledonian Breweries UK from 2014 (inside.beer, 17.9.2019).
The pandemic caused a natural pause in the plans for the brewery. Still, in November 2021, the City of Edinburgh Council officially granted planning permission for the new brewery. (inside.beer, 2.11.2021) However, the plans have been put on hold since then, raising doubts about whether the brewery will ever be constructed.
